Reports: Adrenaline Rush can Kill You – The Good and the Bad

12 Jul Reports: Adrenaline Rush can Kill You – The Good and the Bad

Imagine you’re standing at one of the cliffs of Possum Kingdom Lake, Texas, or paragliding in Sedona Red Rocks USA. 

The sudden spine-chilling rush of energy and fear you feel just before you leap is priceless.

Ever felt this sudden surge in your energy when you’re excited or in danger? Well, that’s an adrenaline rush.

But can you believe an adrenaline rush may kill you for real?

Also known as the “fight-or-flight response”, the adrenaline rush is the body’s defense mechanism to escape a dangerous situation by prioritizing the survival-sufficient body functions only.

Biologically, it is the result of the release of adrenaline hormone from the adrenal glands.

It mostly happens during a dangerous, stressful, exciting, or threatening situation and may act like a trigger from a threat (perceived or real). 

However, the basis of an adrenaline rush killing you might come from the way your body reacts to excitement and threat.

This blog goes into more detail along with the review of some reports of adrenaline rush and excitement killing some people.

Is Adrenaline Rush Good Or Bad?

Getting a certain answer to—is an adrenaline rush good or bad is quite difficult.

The release of adrenaline hormones at the time enables the wakefulness to survive a situation. This pressure prevents the freezing or flight mode and allows you to control the situation you’re in.

However, while it puts the body in survival mode, the adrenaline rush is not always good.

In the language of science, an adrenaline rush is an intense feeling which binds the receptors of the heart and amplifies the heart rate and breathing. Therefore, it builds an intense panic situation by increasing stress.

Hence, while a little adrenaline rush during a crisis can be good, too much of it can weaken your heart muscles.

This natural survival instinct by the body when occurs repeatedly can cause health complications. These health issues include:

• Development of tumor
• Premature aging
• Miscarriage in women
• Depression
• Psychiatric condition

In fact, at times, an adrenaline rush can cause you to faint as well.

In fact, many people faint at the sight of blood or while watching a horror movie or a scary scene.

But can someone be “scared to death” literally?

Can Adrenaline Rush Kill You?

An adrenaline rush clearly creates a stressful environment for the mind and body.

Adrenaline rush:

• increases the heartbeat and blood pressure,
• leads to rapid breathing,
• expands the lungs and pupils, and
• increases sweating.

Clearly, this can be pretty scary, especially when the situation is not that intense. 

Naturally, how can adrenaline give you a heart attack is often a valid question to ask.

The evidence suggests feeling too anxious frequently can have severe effects on your heart health!

In rare instances when the adrenaline rush lasts longer than expected, it can cause damage to the heart tissues and raise blood pressure. 

Also, continuous stress also weakens the heart. Hence, there’s no doubt that adrenaline can give you a heart attack.

An eight years comprehensive study on 30,000 U.S. adults shows those who experience continuous stress showed an increase in mortality risk by 43%.

In fact, there are some real instances of adrenaline rush taking people’s life.

Report #1

In a rare incident, a 70-year-old restaurateur named Josephine “Ann” Harris dies of cardiac arrest. This happened soon after President Obama stopped at her diner for breakfast. According to friends and family, Harris who didn’t know Obama would visit was his big fan. Harris, however, was found to have heart disease before this incident.

Report #2

Another such incident took place during the FIFA world cup in Germany held from June 9 to July 9, 2006.

As per the evidence, acute cardiovascular events were assessed in 4279 patients. As compared to the control period, the risk of cardiac emergencies was 2.66 more on the days of Germany’s match.

Report #3

In 1884, a New York Times story was reported about the sudden death of the wife of Aaron Marks—a known clothier—due to a disturbance in the store.

So, clearly, excitement can kill people. However, death from excitement is rare. On the contrary, negative emotions like stress, fear, sadness, voodoo death, and broken-heart syndrome are more likely to take life.

But how it all happens? What does adrenaline do to your body?

What Happens to Your Body When Adrenaline is Released?

Hypothalamus communicates with the body through the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system governs the fight or flight response of your body.

When in a life-threatening situation, the nervous system releases the adrenaline hormones in the bloodstream, resulting in a specific response.

During an adrenaline rush, your body uses stored glycogen to keep you strong and maintain longer contractions.

Adrenaline, when drops on heart-muscle cells, opens the calcium channel of the cell membrane. After contact, calcium ions cause the heart muscles to contract. 

When this persists for longer, the muscles might be unable to relax, and this can be life-threatening.

For some people, in fact, the adrenaline rush can be a little more dangerous than you would expect.

Dying Due to Adrenaline Rush – Who is at High Risk?

Blame it on the lifestyle or the genetics; sadly for some people adrenaline rush is triggered even when there’s no danger or exciting situation.

In certain cases, the adrenaline rush can be LETHAL.

The people who are most at risk may include:

• Those with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• People with pre-existing heart diseases
• Depressed or people already dealing with severe anxiety

Essentially, these are the main groups who are most at risk. However, the human mind and body are complex. The adrenaline rush has different reactions in different people. 

While for faint-hearted people it’s a curse, some people purposely take part in activities to FEEL THE RUSH.

There are many activities that cause an adrenaline rush, including ice climbing, motorcycle racing, sky diving, or even watching horror movies.

Extreme sports athletes often describe the adrenaline rush as feeling a “natural high” experience they can’t get enough of.

How Long can Adrenaline Rush Last?

Typically, the adrenaline rush lasts anywhere from 20-30 minutes. 

It takes around 1 hour for your body to completely come out of a stressful adrenaline rush. 

However, how long it takes to recover from the adrenaline rush also depends on what triggers it. 

For instance, if you are going for an interview, it is going to last until you complete your interview. Just like that, if you are about to do skydiving, the adrenaline rush is highest when you’re about to jump. 

If it’s because of a scene from a horror movie, it’s more likely to subside quickly. 

Clearly, the adrenaline rush can be fun sometimes. But considering the ill effects of the adrenaline rush in the long term and particularly for certain people, it’s vital to know a few ways to take control of it.

How to Control Adrenaline Rush?

To deal with the negative effects of adrenaline rush and return to a calmer state, one must develop certain healthy skills.

Here’s a list of things you can do to fight back an unwanted adrenaline rush.

#1. Practice Relaxation Techniques

The adrenaline rush naturally brings your body to alert mode. Your muscles have stronger contractions and your heart pumps faster. Hence, practicing some relaxation techniques can be helpful.

For this, you can try:

• Slow and concentrated deep breathing
• Counting technique to divert your mind
• Relaxing each and every muscle of your body
• Practicing mindfulness
• Visualizing positive outcomes
• Talking to your friend

Even trying one or two of these measures can help you find relaxation.

#2. Adopt a Healthy Lifestyle

Today’s lethargic lifestyle contributes to the unwanted and lethal adrenaline rush people keep experiencing. 

Having good food and an active body has countless benefits. One of them is keeping the adrenaline under control.

Adopting a healthy lifestyle includes:

• Having a 30 minutes daily workout routine to make your heart strong
• Practicing gentle yoga to relax both mentally and physically
• Eating healthy foods, particularly those with vitamin B to relax.
• Avoiding alcohol and caffeine
• Drinking ample water
• Taking the right amount of sleep
• Going on vacations or taking breaks can allow you to unplug

Try these to stay healthy and exercise better control over your emotional responses.  

#3. Taking Medical Help

If nothing works, it’s time to visit your doctor. The adrenaline rush can be due to some fear or persisting stress. During these times, it’s better to consult a doctor.

Depending upon the root cause, different doctors can help you in different situations.

If the rush you feel is due to any hormonal imbalance, a physician can offer all the help you need.

However, if the reason has to do with mental issues, psychologists can be the savior.

In any case, don’t shy away to ask for help even if you’re scared to death.

Moving on, there is one thing that still lingers around and is left unanswered.

So, what is it?

Feel the Rush

In a nutshell, know that the adrenaline rush can be bad and yes it can kill you. Just like everything else, an excess adrenaline rush is not good for you. 

The phrase “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” quite doesn’t go well with an adrenaline rush all the time. 

Make sure you feel the rush to be alive but not at the cost of your health. 

If this blog tickled your curiosity, don’t forget to share it with the daredevils and adrenaline junkies of your group.

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